What is the purpose or meaning of "suffering"?

Answer 1

Pushing you to your limit. There are only two ways; we are either pushed by pain or attracted by pleasure and/or both, until we learn to walk the fine line, or enter the narrow gate or, as we say in English, wake up smell the coffee!0!

Answer 2

The meaning of "suffering" is antonymous with "happiness" and the term simply means "hardships of endurance" regarding the three means which include bodily, verbal and mental actions/reactions. I think the purpose of "suffering" is fundamentally aimed at reminding all human beings of their awareness since such suffering has long been experienced since thousands of years and also considered as the common problem to all humankind, therefore, major religions in the world teach their followers to understand how to cope with all kinds of "suffering". In sum, everyone must have his or her own suffering, more or less, from the cradle to the grave.

Answer 3

Suffering causes people to change their behavior, so that further suffering can be avoided. Hunger is a form of suffering, and it motivates someone to hunt for food. A spanking is a form of suffering, but the sting on the bottom is probably secondary to the humiliation of the situation, so in that case the primary suffering is psychological rather than physical. Suffering, whether from natural causes or inflicted by people, causes its victims to change their behavior.

Answer 4

Considering that we don't learn anything from pain or suffering, and that it always happens on so many levels of circumstances regardless of various measures, we can assume that it's is just anoher human condition to an event, it's nothing more than an experience, or collection of experience because we "suffer" throuought our entire lives. Try not to think why but rather how we suffer. that proves it all

Answer 5

Suffering builds strength and character. Suffering also causes you to seek God rather than focus on the trappings of the world and its temporary amusements. Suffering breeds humility if we focus on the One who suffered in our place for the redemption of sins.

Hebrews 2:9
But we see Jesus...for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.

Answer 6

Your question has a Christian odor?

Christians are destined to suffer. It's their privilege to suffer. Suffering pays Christians back for their sins, tempers, and refines them.

(1 Cor 11:32 Darby) " But being judged, we are disciplined of the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world."

Suffering produces endurance in God fearing individuals and gets rid of the 'lead' the worthless individuals. (see box)

Endurance produces hope
hope leads to an approved condition
which leads to salvation.

Answer 7

How can we experience pleasure and comfort if we didn't know how it is like to experience suffering or vice versa? There has to be a combination of these two opposites to make a balanced harmony.

In another idea, suffering comes to us as a test to shun away evil and maintain our composure heading towards virtuous life.

Answer 8

There is none. Think of the poor and vulnerable in Third World countries for example. People can be gang raped, tortured, murdered, mutilated, suffer from horrific diseases etc. Think of them not the lucky Westerners, then try to answer the question.

Answer 9

To teach how NOT to act. I know that if I place my hand in fire, it will hurt. So no matter how pretty the fire is I do not touch it. Some of our actions lead to our own pain and suffering. This result is not usually immediate, but it occurs. We learn to avoid painful behaviors. In most instances we can learn this through the experience of others. Just as most of us do not have to be burned before we realize the painful consequences of putting our hands in fire, we do not have to experience the painful consequences of certain actions before leaning to avoid them. Unfortunately, many of us must experience these painful consequences in order to learn. In some cases, those painful consequences are fatal as in the case of having unprotected sex. One may have participated in this risky behavior for some time and remained healthy. Then one day it makes you sick. Perhaps deathly so.
Suffering also teaches us to appreciate joy and pleasure. If our lives were only full of joy and pleasure, it would not be as sweet.

Answer 10

What doesn't kill us makes us stronger. Sometimes it is suffering that allows us to grow as a person. It stretches our boundaries. Great beauty can be borne out of great pain, as an oyster creates a pearl. If we didn't know suffering, we couldn't appreciate true joy. Life is filled with trials. It is how we overcome them that defines who we are. Life can't always be easy.